Are movie trailers showing too much?

[Mitch Henessey]

For the past several months, trailers for this summer's most anticipated films have been hitting the web on a nearly daily basis.
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But the trailers aimed at getting moviegoers excited for these big-budget releases may be showing off a bit too much.

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According to a new study, half (49 percent) of Americans feel that movie trailers these days give away too many of a movie’s best scenes, with a full 16 percent agreeing strongly.

So should the scenes from Iron Man 3 of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) saving a group of people falling from an airplane or flying through the air with an army of other Iron Mans be saved for when audiences actually hit the theater?

The findings from the YouGov Omnibus survey taken April 26 to 28 found that the reveal of plot in a trailer deterred only about 19 percent of respondents from wanting to see the movie. In contrast, 24 percent said that it made them want to see the film more.

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Movie trailers remain extremely important to audiences, playing the biggest role (48 percent) in pushing people to see a movie, followed closely by personal recommendations (46 percent).

So even if a trailer shows some of the best scenes from a film, it doesn't mean people won't see it. And films like Iron Man 3 still have a few surprises up their sleeves (see the stars talk about what makes the film so surprising here.)

Movie studios have tried a variety of techniques over the past few years when it comes to trailers. Some, such as recent release Oblivion, starring Tom Cruise, have gone out of their way to avoid showing major surprises in the plot. And Lionsgate's Hunger Games trailers didn't show any of the footage from the actual arena where the fighting took place.

What remains important to moviegoers when they actually sit down in the theater is that there's a good plot or storyline to the film (77 percent), followed by the cast (45 percent), the genre (22 percent), the director (20 percent) and the book or play it’s based on (15 percent).

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/study-moviegoers-think-trailers-give-450336

Interesting article.

While I do agree some trailers give away too much, you have to face facts, in most cases, it doesn't matter. People are going to flock to the theaters in large crowds to see Iron Man 3, The Hangover Part III, Man Of Steel, Fast & Furious 6, and Star Trek Into Darkness regardless. Each film has multiple trailers that show a lot, but the big summer blockbusters will rake in the millions. Fast & Furious, Star Trek, The Hangover, and Iron Man all have huge fan followings. And everyone is anxious to see the new Superman film (unfortunately, Zack Snyder is directing ). Also, regarding the summer blockbusters, big time Hollywood studios invest a lot of money in their movies, so they're not going to take a chance of a flop. They'll promote and push the movie in every form of advertisement imaginable, and it's really that simple.

Although, every mainstream release can't rely on massive fan followings. For some, it can be a tricky approach, because you probably don't want to show too much, and drive people away. But you don't want to be too ambiguous, because unless said moviegoer decides to go online and do more research, they probably won't waste the time to watch the movie, when it comes out.

As far as personal preference goes, I like the less is more approach. Two examples:

Teaser

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Full Trailer

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Teaser

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Full Trailer

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The teaser for Carrie is perfect. The trailer hardly gives away anything, and at the same time, they give you a glimpse of the aftermath/carnage from the big prom scene at the end. Stephen King's name, destruction, and one look at a terrified Chloe Grace Moretz covered in blood. That's all you need. In under one minute, you can convince people, who haven't read the book, or seen De Palma's original masterpiece.

Then they released the full trailer. I'm sorry, but it's shit. They show too much, and the new footage is so boring and dull. I looked at the teaser and thought "Huh. This remake might be something special." I looked at the full trailer and thought "Yeah. This is going to be another shitty horror remake."

The Conjuring teaser is full of intrigue and mystery. Who's in the house? Why are the spirits targeting Lili Taylor? What happens after the match goes out in the basement? On the other hand, the full trailer is underwhelming and dry. It makes The Conjuring look like another boring and predictable PG-13 horror film with a haunting backdrop.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

Generally speaking, the big man name movies are going to sell themselves. But with a movie like Iron Man 3, which is going to sell because it's a hot pre-summer blockbuster, the trailer has to show off all the explosions, and tease big twists that may or may not actually happen. Most of the time, I feel like trailers do way more than needed - mostly because by the time the film actual comes out, there's been 3-5 versions of it released, and each are different for theatrical or television release. That doesn't even include international trailers. In the most recent Iron Man trailers, they show the scene where all the dozens of suits are attacking something; that really frustrated me. I would have rather gone in and been surprised by that happening, than to go in waiting for it. Now, I haven't seen the movie yet, so I guess that could totally change and catch me off guard.

To play devil's advocate, most of the time you've forgotten everything in the trailer by the time you actually go to the movie. The split-second flashes of scenes in the trailer aren't going to piece together the film for you. Nothing is ruined, at the end of the day. And if you're really worried about it, you can always just NOT go on the internet and go out of your way to look up all the various videos and information out there for the movie.

[YOUTUBE]d-S9nKByu5w[/YOUTUBE]

Check out this theatrical release trailer for ID4. This is one of my favorites. It's about two minutes long, all said and done, and gets over all the main characters, the big name actors, and lets you know what's going on - aliens are coming, and they're blowing shit up. They show brief footage of major monuments falling, and one clip of the alien invasion sweeping over a military base. In two minutes, you know the basic plot of the film, who is in it, and if you'll be going to the theaters to see it. But they don't give away all the cool scenes. THey don't spoil the whole reason you pay to see the movie in the first place. Great fucking trailer.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

Trouble is they are too reveling. I often caught myself that after watching trailer for some comedy then after watch that comedy I dont see no difference whatsoever. I mean, every major laugh they have in the movie they allready showed in trailer and thats it. And its not just me, its with just about everybody who follows some movie from start(teasers, trailers then the movie itself). In my opinion its better to know less because you will perhaps be more enterteined when you watch the movie. You know that they are filming some movie, watch teasers and then watch the movie itself.

But you are 100% right, its the movie studios fault that they show too much because they want more advertising and you cant blame them for wantiing money. And you will watch the movie despite that fact so it doesnt mather to them. Its just, it spoils your entertainment a bit.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Just passing along a little update on this:

In a move sure to ignite plenty of debate in Hollywood, the National Association of Theater Owners has released voluntary guidelines calling for movie trailers to be no longer than two minutes -- 30 seconds shorter than is the norm.

The guidelines also specify that a trailer cannot be shown for a movie more than five months before its release. Nor can marketing materials be displayed inside of a theater for a film more than four months away from release.

Distributors will be given two exemptions a year on both trailer length and marketing lead time.

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The guidelines apply to titles opening on or after Oct. 1.

NATO's executive board came up with the new scheme in an effort to give exhibitors more control over how Hollywood movies are marketed inside of their cinemas. Theater owners, who feel the brunt of complaints from the public, believe trailers are often too long and can give away too much of the plot.

NATO has spent months working on the guidelines, including speaking with each of the studios. The trade organization said the proposals were significantly altered as a result of those discussions.

Hollywood studios, which rely heavily on trailers to woo moviegoers, have generally refuted the notion that 2.5 minutes is too long. Together, television advertising and in-theater trailers are considered the most potent weapons in marketing a movie, even as the Internet has made trailers ubiquitous.

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It's not uncommon for many circuits to play seven or eight trailers before a film. That translates to 17.5 minutes to 20 minutes, on top of in-house advertising.

Although the guidelines would be voluntary, studios fear that an exhibitor could cite the new policy in refusing to play a trailer that is longer than two minutes. They also worry that some theater owners will respond to the shorter time by simply running more trailers, many of which studios pay exhibitors to play.

The guidelines will be implemented by individual theater circuits, although it's not clear whether all exhibitors will abide by the suggested rules.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/theater-owners-enact-new-guidelines-674417

I forgot about in-house advertising the first time around. Before the previews start rolling, you'll see promo ads for the theater's rewards programs, theater showings for special events (boxing matches, UFC fights, etc.), and an introduction video for the theater itself. On top of that, you'll have a reoccurring trailer to remind you of the importance to experience the big name blockbusters at the theater, and in some cases, theaters use the in-house trailers to push the gimmicky stuff (3D, Cinemark's Xtreme Digital format, etc.).

I'm still in favor of a less is more approach for the trailers, but the four month restriction for marketing materials rule is taking things too far. I have a hard time buying into a few movie posters, cardboard posters, or cups and popcorn bags used to promote upcoming releases ruining the movie with too many spoilers.